House Bill Seeks Authorization for War with Iran

October 10, 2013 | Edited by Benjamin Loehrke

Spoiler alert - Rep. Trent Franks (R-AZ) is shopping around a House bill that would authorize the use of military force against Iran. The bill is set to drop days before the next round of negotiations with Iran begin, where officials and experts are cautiously optimistic a nuclear deal could be struck.

--Rep. Franks suggests that the threat of attack will help upcoming sensitive nuclear negotiations. Some congressional aides remain skeptical of the bill, especially because Congress does not have much appetite for more war and was even reluctant to authorize military force against Syria. John Hudson of Foreign Policy has the story and the text of the bill. http://atfp.co/GHYih4

Nuclear deal made - The U.S. and Vietnam today signed a nuclear trade agreement, allowing the transfer and sale of sensitive nuclear energy technology to Vietnam. The U.S. government and nuclear energy supporters argue that this agreement will open opportunities for the sale of nuclear technology to Vietnam - the second largest nuclear energy market in East Asia.

--Nonproliferation advocates remain concerned that the deal might not prevent Vietnam from enriching uranium or reprocessing plutonium - capabilities that could be used for developing nuclear weapons. Details of the agreement are not readily available. Elaine Grossman of Global Security Newswire has the early story. http://bit.ly/19C8yOJ

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Relieved of command - Vice Adm. Tim Giardina, deputy commander of U.S. nuclear forces, has officially been relieved of duty amid investigations that he used fake chips at an Iowa casino. "I know of no other case ever of a deputy commander who was relieved for cause,” said former STRATCOM Commander Gen. Eugene Habiger about the incident. Robert Burns of AP has the story. http://cbsn.ws/15X8XQN

Primer - “Iran's nuclear program: Cause for concern, but not alarm.” Background and perspective from Ali Vaez in Al Jazeera America.

--Why negotiate? ”Iran’s nuclear program cannot be wished away or bombed away. U.S. military and intelligence chiefs have made clear that the only sustainable solution is one in which Tehran chooses to refrain from building nuclear weapons, under an accord that thickens the barrier between civilian and military nuclear activity in Iran. Such an accord would limit the scale and scope of Iran's nuclear work, enhance the IAEA's monitoring capabilities, and allow Iran to re-join the international community,” writes Vaez. http://alj.am/16TrLRF

Excess U - “Iran has more enriched uranium than it needs for its research and would be willing to discuss the ‘surplus’ with Western powers during nuclear talks next week, Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani said Wednesday.” AP has the story. http://n.pr/180vlY6

Iranian politics - ”Political drama plays out in public in Iran” by Ali Akbar Dareini and Brian Murphy of AP. http://bit.ly/17hBwDE

Facebook chat - Have questions about US-Iran negotiations? Join us for a live Facebook chat with Joel Rubin, Ploughshares Fund’s Director of Policy and Government Affairs, from 12:30 to 1:00pm EST today. Details here. http://bit.ly/18S2gO3

Tweet - @nukes_of_hazard: "Russia’s reaction to Israel’s anti-missile defense test shows that in the real world, surprise can lead to peril." http://bit.ly/1bfcbNL

Labs shutdown - “Sandia and Los Alamos national laboratories are preparing to halt operations by Oct. 21 and furlough most of their 18,000 New Mexico employees if the federal government shutdown is not resolved before then,” writes James Monteleone for the Albuquerque Journal. http://bit.ly/1c4baZQ

MOX decision pending - “NNSA Sets Spring 2014 as Target For Plutonium-Disposition Decision” by Douglas Guarino of Global Security Newswire. http://bit.ly/1gtluxm

Ethical investing - “The private sector is investing over USD 314,349,920,000 in the private companies that produce, maintain, and modernise the nuclear arsenals in France, India, the UK and the US,” assesses IKV PAX Christi and the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons in a new report. The report argues that financial institutions could have significant impact on the global nuclear threat if they made ethical investments and divested from companies that build the bomb.

--Full report: “Don’t Bank on the Bomb: A Global Report on the Financing of Nuclear Weapons Producers.” (pdf) http://bit.ly/19oUBYi

Events:

--”A Discussion with Ken Pollack, Author of Unthinkable” Wed. Oct. 16 from noon-1:00 at the Middle East Institute. Details here. http://bit.ly/1b3xnX3

--”Minimum Deterrence: Examining the Evidence” discussion with Doug Feith, John Harvey, Amb. Robert Joseph, Adm. Richard Miles and Keith Payne at the Hudson Institute. Wed. Oct. 16th from 12:00-1:30pm. Lunch will be provided. RSVP here. http://bit.ly/17g8Dqg

--”The End of Overkill? Reassessing U.S. Nuclear Weapons Policy” Discussion with Benjamin Friedman, Elbridge Colby, Hans Kristensen, Matt Fay and Christopher Preble. Oct. 15th at noon at the CATO Institute. http://bit.ly/1hwKUYC

--”Securing The Nuclear Enterprise: What Nuclear Crises Teach Us About Future Security Threats” Discussion with Matt Stokes, Henry Sokolski and Brian Finlay at Stimson. Tues. Oct. 22 from 11:30-1:00. Details here. http://bit.ly/17dNvBY